-
For those who feel the tension of grief and joy
This is our seventh Christmas without my brother. He would be 26 now, probably married, and as much as he loved kids, he most likely would have been trying to keep up with the size of our family. Christmas is always bittersweet; all the holidays and family gatherings are. There will always be a void, an empty seat, painful reminders of his absence. I’m not an expert on grief, but if there’s anything I’ve learned through loss, it’s that somehow grief and joy can coexist. This used to make me feel guilty. I remember clearly the day I arrived at my parents’ house, the day…
-
Encounters with Jesus, An Advent Devotional Series
Three times over the past eight years I was in the final weeks of pregnancy during the season of Advent. Waiting and hoping have been familiar companions. Last year our fifth baby was due eight days after Advent began and as November drew to a close I would wake up each day and wonder, “Is today the day?” Every contraction gave me cause for hope that the delivery would be soon, and every time the contractions stopped I grew more weary. Hope deferred makes the heart sick…. (Proverbs 13:12) Finally, the day after his due date, our baby boy was born and I felt like we could finally prepare for and…
